Life in the 18th Century DAILY LIFE IN 18th CENTURY BRITAIN By Tim Lambert Society in 18th Century Britain In the late 18th century life the industrial revolution began to transform life in Britain. Until then most people lived in the countryside and made their living from farming. By the mid 19th century most people in Britain lived in towns and made their living from mining or manufacturing industries. From 1712 a man named Thomas Newcomen (1663-1729) made primitive steam engines for pumping water from mines. In 1769 James Watt (1736-1819) patented a more efficient steam engine. In 1785 his engine was adapted to driving machinery in a cotton factory. The use of steam engines to drive machines slowly transformed industry. Meanwhile during the 1700s Britain built up a great overseas empire. The North American colonies were lost after the War of Independence 1776-1783. On the other hand after the Seven Years War 1756-1763 Britain captured Canada and India.

Britain also took Dominica, Grenada, St Vincent and Tobago in the West Indies. In 1707 the Act of Union was passed. Scotland was united with England and Wales. England became part of Great Britain. Owning land was the main form of wealth in the 18th century. Political power and influence was in the hands of rich landowners. At the top were the nobility. Below them were a class of nearly rich landowners called the gentry. In the early 18th century there was another class of landowners called yeomen between the rich and the poor. However during the century this class became less and less numerous. However other middle class people such as merchants and professional men became richer and more numerous, especially in the towns. Below them were the great mass of the population, craftsmen and laborers. In the 18th century probably half the population lived as subsistence or bare survival level. In the early 18th century England suffered from gin drinking. It was cheap and it was sold everywhere as you did not need a license to sell it. Many people ruined their health by drinking gin. Yet for many poor people drinking gin was their only comfort .

The situation improved after 1751 when a tax was imposed on gin. At the end of the 1700s a group of Evangelical Christians called the Clapham Sect were formed. They campaigned for an end to slavery and cruel sports. They were later called the Clapham Sect because so many of them lived in Clapham . The history of English society Population in 18th Century Britain At the end of the 17th century it was estimated the population of England and Wales was about 5 1/2 million. The population of Scotland was about 1 million. The population of London was about 600,000. In the mid 18th century the population of Britain was about 6 1/2 million. In the late 18th century it grew rapidly and by 1801 it was over 9 million. The population of London was almost 1 million. During the 18th century towns in Britain grew larger. Nevertheless most towns still had populations of less than 10,000. However in the late 18th century new industrial towns in the Midland and the North of England mushroomed.

Meanwhile the population of London grew to nearly 1 million by the end of the century. Other Georgian towns were much smaller. The population of Liverpool was about 77,000 in 1800. Birmingham had about 73,000 people and Manchester had about 70,000. Bristol had a population of about 68,000. Sheffield was smaller with 31,000 people and Leeds had about 30,000 people. Leicester had a population of about 17,000 in 1800. In the south Portsmouth had a population of about 32,000 in 1800 while Exeter had about 20,000 people. Towns in 18th Century England Many towns in England were improved in the later 18th century when bodies of men called Paving or Improvement Commissioners were formed by Acts of Parliament. They had powers to pave and clean the streets and sometimes to light them with oil lamps and candles . Some also arranged collections of rubbish. Since most of it was organic it could be sold as fertilizer.

The history of towns in England Agriculture in 18th Century England During the 18th century agriculture was gradually transformed by an agricultural revolution. Until 1701 seed was sown by hand. In that year Jethro Tull invented a seed drill, which sowed seed in straight lines. He also invented a horse drawn hoe which hoed the land and destroyed weed between rows of crops. Furthermore until the 18th century most livestock was slaughtered at the beginning of winter because farmers could not grow enough food to feed their animals through the winter months. Until the 18th century most land in England was divided into 3 fields. Each year 2 fields were sown with crops while the third was left fallow (unused). The Dutch began to grow swedes or turnips on land instead of leaving it fallow. (The turnips restored the soil's fertility). When they were harvested the turnips could be stored to provide food for livestock over the winter. The new methods were popularized in England by a man named Robert 'Turnip' Townsend (1674-1741).

Under the 3 field system, which still covered much of England, all the land around a village or small town, was divided into 3 huge fields. Each farmer owned some strips of land in each field. During the 18th century land was enclosed. That means it was divided up so each farmer had all his land in one place instead of scattered across 3 fields. Enclosure allowed farmers to use their land more efficiently. Also in the 18th century farmers like Robert Bakewell began scientific stock breeding (selective breeding). Farm animals grew much larger and they gave more meat, wool and milk. The history of farming Food in the 18th Century There was little change in food in the 18th century. Despite the improvements in farming food for ordinary people remained plain and monotonous. For them meat was a luxury. In England a poor person's food was mainly bread and potatoes. In the 18th century drinking tea became common even among ordinary people. Houses in the 18th Century In the 18th century a tiny minority of the population lived in luxury. The rich built great country houses.

A famous landscape gardener called Lancelot Brown (1715-1783) created beautiful gardens. (He was known as 'Capability' Brown from his habit of looking at land and saying it had 'great capabilities'). The leading architect of the 18th century was Robert Adam (1728-1792). He created a style called neo-classical and he designed many 18th century country houses. In Georgian Britain the wealthy owned comfortable upholstered furniture. They owned beautiful furniture, some of it veneered or inlaid. In the 18th century much fine furniture was made by Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779), George Hepplewhite (?-1786) and Thomas Sheraton (1751-1806). The famous clock maker James Cox (1723-1800) made exquisite clocks for the rich. However the poor had none of these things. Craftsmen and laborers lived in 2 or 3 rooms. The poorest people lived in just one room. Their furniture was very simple and plain.

The history of furniture Clothes in the 1700s In the 18th century men wore knee-length trouser like garments called breeches and stockings. They also wore waistcoats and frock coats. They wore linen shirts. Both men and women wore wigs and for men three-cornered hats were popular. Men wore buckled shoes. Women wore stays (a bodice with strips of whalebone) and hooped petticoats under their dresses. Women in the 18th century did not wear knickers . Fashionable women carried folding fans. Fashion was very important for the rich in the 18th century but poor people's clothes hardly changed at all. Leisure in the 18th Century Traditional games remained popular in the 18th century. These included games such as chess, drafts and backgammon. They also tennis and a rough version of football. It is believed dominoes was invented in China. It reached Europe in the 18th century. Then in 1759 a man named John Jeffries invented an entirely new board game called A Journey Through Europe or The Play of Geography in which players race across a map of Europe.

Horse racing was carried on for centuries before the 18th century but at this time it became a professional sport. The Jockey Club was formed in 1727. The Derby began in 1780. For the well off card games and gambling were popular. The theater was also popular. In the early 18th century most towns did not have a purpose built theater and plays were staged in buildings like inns. However in the late 18th century theaters were built in most towns in England. Assembly rooms were also built in most towns. In them people played cards and attended balls. In London pleasure gardens were created. Moreover a kind of cricket was played long before the 18th century but at that time it took on its modern form. The first cricket club was formed at Hambledon in Hampshire about 1750. Also in the 18th century rich people visited spas. They believed that bathing in and/or drinking spa water could cure illness. Towns like Buxton, Bath and Tunbridge prospered. At the end of the 18th century wealthy people began to spend time at the seaside. (Again they believed that bathing in seawater was good for your health).

Seaside resorts like Brighton and Bognor boomed. Reading was also a popular pastime in the 18th century and the first novels were published at this time. Books were still expensive but in many towns you could pay to join a circulating library. The first daily newspaper in England was printed in 1702. The Times began in 1785. Many people enjoyed cruel 'sports' like cockfighting and bull baiting. (A bull was chained to a post and dogs were trained to attack it). Rich people liked fox hunting. Public executions were also popular and they drew large crowds. Boxing without gloves was also popular (although some boxers began to wear leather gloves in the 18th century). Puppet shows like Punch and Judy also drew the crowds. Furthermore in the late 18th century the circus became a popular form of entertainment. Smoking clay pipes was popular in the 18th century. So was taking snuff. Wealthy young men would go on a 'grand tour' of Europe lasting one or two years. The history of games Education in the 18th Century In the early 18th century charity schools were founded in many towns in England.

They were sometimes called Blue Coat Schools because of the color of the children's uniforms. Boys from well off families went to grammar schools. Girls from well off families also went to school. However dissenters (Protestants who did not belong to the Church of England) were not allowed to attend most public schools. Instead they went to their own dissenting academies. Transport in the 18th Century Transport was greatly improved during the 18th century. Groups of rich men formed turnpike trusts. Acts of Parliament gave them the right to improve and maintain certain roads. Travelers had to pay tolls to use them. The first turnpikes were created as early as 1663 but they became far more common in the 18th century. Transporting goods was also made much easier by digging canals. In the early 18th century goods were often transported by pack horse. Moving heavy goods was very expensive. However in 1759 the Duke of Bridgewater decided to build a canal to bring coal from his estate at Worsley to Manchester. He employed an engineer called James Brindley. When it was completed the Bridgewater canal halved the price of coal in Manchester.

Many more canals were dug in the late 18th century and the early 19th century. They played a major role in the industrial revolution by making it cheaper to transport goods. Travel in the 18th century was made dangerous by highwaymen. The most famous is Dick Turpin (1705-1739). Originally a butcher Turpin does not deserve his romantic reputation. In reality he was a cruel and brutal man. Like many of his fellow highwaymen he was hanged. Smuggling was also very common in the 18th century. It could be very profitable as import duties on goods like rum and tobacco were very high. A history of Transport Medicine in the 18th Century Knowledge of anatomy greatly improved in the 18th century. The famous 18th century surgeon John Hunter (1728-1793) is sometimes called the Father of Modern Surgery. He invented new procedures such as tracheotomy. Among other advances a Scottish surgeon named James Lind discovered that fresh fruit or lemon juice could cure or prevent scurvy. He published his findings in 1753. A major scourge of the 18th century was smallpox.

Even if it did not kill you it could leave you scarred with pox marks. Then, in 1721 Lady Mary Wortley Montague introduced inoculation from Turkey. You cut the patient then introduced matter from a smallpox pustule into the wound. The patient would (hopefully!) develop a mild case of the disease and be immune in future. Then, in 1796 a doctor named Edward Jenner (1749-1823) realized that milkmaids who caught cowpox were immune to smallpox. He invented vaccination. The patient was cut then matter from a cowpox pustule was introduced. The patient gained immunity to smallpox. In 1700 many people believed that scrofula (a form of tubercular infection) could be healed by a monarch's touch. (Scrofula was called the kings evil). Queen Anne (1702-1714) was the last British monarch to touch for scrofula. However there were still many quacks in the 18th century. Limited medical knowledge meant many people were desperate for a cure.

One of the most common treatments, for the wealthy, was bathing in or drinking spa water, which they believed could cure all kinds of illness. The history of medicine Art and Science in the 18th Century During the 18th century England produced two great portrait painters, Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) and Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792). Meanwhile the artist William Hogarth (1697-1764) painted scenes showing the harsh side of 18th century life. The Royal Academy of Arts was founded in 1768. In theater the greatest actor of the 18th century was David Garrick (1717-1779). In science Joseph Priestley (1733-1804) discovered oxygen. Henry Cavendish (1731-1810) discovered hydrogen. He also calculated the mass and density of the earth. William Herschel (1738-1822) discovered Uranus. The Scottish engineer Thomas Telford (1757-1834) built roads, canals and the Menai suspension bridge.

Technology in the 18th Century In the late 18th century technology advanced rapidly as Britain industrialized. From 1712 Thomas Newcomen made steam engines to pump water from mines. Then, in 1769, James Watt patented a more efficient steam engine and in the 1780s it was adapted to power machinery. The first industry to become mechanized was the textile industry. In 1771 Richard Arkwright opened a cotton-spinning mill with a machine called a water frame, which was powered by a water mill. Then, in 1779, Samuel Crompton invented a new cotton-spinning machine called a spinning mule. Finally in 1785 Edmund Cartwright invented a loom that could be powered by a steam engine. As a result of these new inventions cotton production boomed. Iron production also grew rapidly. In 1784 a man named Henry Cort (1740-1800) invented a much better way of making wrought iron. Until then men had to beat red hot iron with hammers to remove impurities. In 1784 Cort invented the puddling process.

The iron was melted in an extremely hot furnace and stirred of 'puddled' to remove impurities. The result was a vast increase in iron production. Religion in the 18th Century The early 18th century was noted for its lack of religious enthusiasm and the churches in England lacked vigor. However in the mid-18th century things began to change. In 1739 the great evangelist George Whitefield (1714-1770) began preaching. Also in 1739 John Wesley (1703-1791) began preaching. He eventually created a new religious movement called the Methodists. His brother Charles Wesley (1707-1788) was a famous hymn writer. John Wesley traveled all over the country, often preaching in open spaces. People jeered at his meetings and threw stones but Wesley persevered. He never intended to form a movement separate from the Church of England. However the Methodists did eventually break away. After 1760 Methodism spread to Scotland. In Wales there was a great revival in the years 1738-1742.

Howell Harris (1714-1773) was a key figure. Scotland was also swept by revival in the mid-18th century. William McCulloch and James Robe were the leading figures. Sir Joshua Reynolds The Ladies Waldegrave | Art Blart Exhibition dates: 24th October 2015 – 14th February 2016 The second part of this monster two-part posting. Highlights include the delicacy and strength of the William Blake, the stunning beauty of the John Singer Sargent portrait Lady Agnew of Lochnaw (1892), the perceived movement and presence of The Reverend Robert Walker skating on Duddingston Loch by Sir Henry Raeburn (c. 1795). Watteau’s Fêtes vénitiennes (1718-19) confirmed my pleasure when looking at his paintings, the stillness, romanticism and intensity of vision while the muscularity and intensity of the painting in Constable’s The Vale of Dedham c. 1827-28 was a revelation. Gainsborough’s pastoral River landscape with a view of a distant village (c.

1748-50) was a surprise while the impressionists did not disappoint. Favourite among the last room, though, was the joyous spaces and overlaid patches of light and colour in Paul Cézanne’s The big trees (c. 1904). One of the great treasures of the exhibition. Marcus . Many thankx to the AGNSW for allowing me to publish the art work in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image. All installation photographs © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Michael Clarke, Director of the National Galleries of Scotland, with Paul Cézanne’s The big trees c. 1904 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at left, Sir Joshua Reynolds’ The Ladies Waldegrave 1780-81 and at right, John Singer Sargent’s Lady Agnew of Lochnaw 1892 © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with, in the corner, William Blake’s God writing upon the tables of the Covenant c. 1805 and at right, Sir Joshua Reynolds’ The Ladies Waldegrave 1780-81 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales God writing upon the tables of the Covenant c. 1805 Ink and watercolour over pencil and some sketching with a stylus on paper Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh William Findlay Watson Bequest, 1881 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales This superb watercolour comes from a group of over 80 illustrations to the Bible executed from Blake’s most significant and loyal patron, Thomas Butts. Artist and patron probably first met in 1799, when Butts commissioned Blake to produce 50 small tempera paintings of biblical subjects. This initial commission seems to have developed into an open-ended series of watercolours, painted over a period of nine years, for which Butts paid Blake a regular stipend.

The original mount belonging to this work, now lost, was inscribed with a reference to the relevant biblical text, which in this case is Deuteronomy 9:10. Sir Joshua Reynolds (England, 1723-92) The Ladies Waldegrave Oil on canvas 143 x 168.3 cm Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh Purchased with funds from the Cowan Smith Bequest and with the aid of the Art Fund, 1952 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales The first president of the Royal Academy, Reynolds worked to raise the status of portraiture in Britain by painting people in the ‘grand manner’ more commonly associated with history painting. This informal portrait, a ‘conversation piece’, features the three sisters Lady Charlotte Maria, Lady Elizabeth Laura and Lady Anna Horatia Waldegrave. Depicting interlocking figures, Reynolds subtly alludes to trios of goddesses or graces of antiquity – a reference that would have been understood by classically educated viewers of the late 18th century.

Reynolds’s triple portrait was commissioned by the sitters’ great-uncle, the celebrated antiquarian, connoisseur and critic Horace Walpole. John Singer Sargent (USA, 1856-1925) Lady Agnew of Lochnaw Purchased with the aid of the Cowan Smith Bequest Fund, 1925 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales One of the best-loved pictures of the National Galleries of Scotland, this portrait of 27-year old Lady Agnew of Lochnaw is the first Sargent to be exhibited in Sydney in 35 years. As one of Sargent’s most glamourous and beguiling characterisations, it was pivotal in establishing the renown of both artist and sitter. The painting was first exhibited at the Royal Academy exhibition in 1893 to wide public acclaim and cemented Sargent’s position as a sought-after, fashionable portraitist of high society. For Lady Agnew, it launched her as a society beauty who later established her own private salon in London.

Ironically, the costs of sustaining such fine style led Lady Agnew to sell her own portrait to the Scottish National Gallery in 1925. In an ornate plush chair and surrounded by swathes of Chinese fabric, Lady Agnew gazes out at the viewer, confidently but enigmatically. Her pose is gracious, but relaxed. The chair and fabric were Sargent’s own props, and along with the generous, gauzy swathes of the sitter’s dress they give the painting a sense of comfort and luxury. Sargent’s brushstrokes are wide and fluid, and in some areas the canvas shows through the thin, sketchy layers of paint. But it is also very carefully composed to present Lady Agnew as an assured and elegant society woman. Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at left, John Singer Sargent’s Lady Agnew of Lochnaw 1892 and at right, Sir Henry Raeburn’s Reverend Robert Walker skating on Duddingston Loch c.

1795 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Sir Henry Raeburn (Scotland, 1756-1823) The Reverend Robert Walker skating on Duddingston Loch c. 1795 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Raeburn was the leading Scottish portrait painter of his time. This striking portrait of Robert Walker (1755-1808), minister of Edinburgh’s Canongate Church and a leading member of the city’s exclusive skating society, has come to be regarded as one of Raeburn’s greatest works. It is the most famous painting in the Scottish National Gallery, often described as the quintessential Scottish painting, and is listed in a recent publication as one of the 1000 paintings you must see before you die. Its simple composition bestows the painting with an extraordinary visual impact. Walker is shown gliding across the icy surface of one of the small lochs near Edinburgh, his arms folded nonchalantly across his chest and his right leg lifted balletically behind him.

Raeburn has cleverly created the effect of ice scored by the skater’s blades by scratching back into the paint surface. Unlike most of his artistic peers, Raeburn received no formal artistic education, instead pursuing other academic studies before being apprenticed to a local goldsmith at the age of sixteen. Raeburn’s approach to painting reflected this unusual path into his profession. He avoided the meticulous production of preparatory drawings and sketches, instead preferring to work straight onto the canvas with minimal formal planning. While this approach invariably meant having to deal with compositional changes in the process of painting, it also enabled Raeburn to produce portraits that were unrivalled in their directness and spontaneity. Sir Henry Raeburn (Scotland, 1756-1823) The Reverend Robert Walker skating on Duddingston Loch (detail) c. 1795 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Botticelli. Cézanne. Gauguin. Leonardo. Monet. Raphael. Titian. Turner. Velázquez. Vermeer.

One of the most significant collections of European old master paintings ever seen in Australia is now open at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, providing a once in a lifetime opportunity for Australians to contemplate the extraordinary quality of over 70 masterful paintings and drawings from across four centuries. The Greats marks the first time these artworks have been exhibited in Australia, with the exception of Rembrandt’s A woman in bed (c. 1647) and Seurat’s La Luzerne, Saint-Denis (1884-85). Deputy Premier and Minister for the Arts, Troy Grant, said with works by some of the world’s most well-known artists, The Greats alongside the Art Gallery of NSW’s own impressive collection is bound to draw big crowds this summer. “An exhibition of this calibre is a real coup for the State and builds on our standing as the cultural capital of Australia,” Minister Grant said. “These incredible works from Scotland may never be on Australian soil again, so art-lovers and novices alike should visit the Art Gallery of NSW and see this historic exhibition while they can.” Michael Brand, director of the Art Gallery of NSW said The Greats is a rich and intimate show of remarkable quality.

“Each masterpiece – whether it be Titian’s luminous Venus rising from the sea (c. 1520-25) or Gauguin’s striking Three Tahitians (1899) – tells its own unique story. Through robust and engaging public programs, the Gallery looks forward to sharing these stories with visitors of all ages.” The Greats: masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland unfolds in rooms devoted to the art of the Italian Renaissance, the Baroque in Southern and Northern Europe, the French and British Enlightenment, nineteenth century Scotland, and Impressionism. The exhibition has been carefully designed and installed to accentuate the grandeur of the paintings and foster an intimate experience with each of the artworks.” Text from the AGNSW Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Edinburg Purchased 1953 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales The Scottish Duke of Argyll, Chief of Clan Campbell, whose hereditary seat is Inverary Castle, commissioned Thomas Gainsborough, one of the most celebrated English portraitists of the 18th century, to paint his likeness.

The artist’s talents were sought by the wealthy elite both in London and in the fashionable resort town of Bath, where he established a studio in 1759. Gainsborough applied dense and feathery brushwork to convey Argyll’s ducal robes, his collar of the Order of Thistle, and the baton of his hereditary office of Master of the King’s Household. The Piazza San Marco, Venice c. 1770-75 Oil on canvas 55.2 x 85.4 cm Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh Accepted by HM Government in lieu of inheritance tax and allocated to the Scottish National Gallery, 1978 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Like his fellow painter Canaletto, Guardi capitalised on the market of tourists eager for topographical views – vedute – of the spectacular urban spaces of Venice. This composition features the Piazza San Marco, which Napoleon would later call ‘the most splendid drawing room in Europe’.

On either side, the receding arcades of official buildings, the Procurator Vecchio and Procurator Nuove, lead the eye towards the Basilica of San Marco, its mosaics shimmering in the sunlight. Behind the bellower is a glimpse of the Doge’s Palace. The scene is enlivened by traders, uniformed government officials, and fashionably dressed tourists – all portrayed through only a few deft strokes of the brush. Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh. Bequest of Lady Murray of Henderland, 1861 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales At the beginning of the 18th century, Watteau pioneered the fêtes gallant, a type of painting depicting a group of men and women enjoying flirtatious love, music and conversation, generally in a park or a garden setting. His paintings inspired a generation of artists who sought to capture the light-hearted elegance of the period.

This painting is one of his few compositions that portray real people: the figure on the left can be identified as Watteau’s friend and fellow artist Nichola Vleugxhels, and the lovelorn bagpipe player on the right is considered a self-portrait of Watteau himself. Purchased by private treaty from the estate of HMV Showering, 1986 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Boucher, considered the pre-eminent painter of the French rococo, effectively invented this genre of elegiac, erotic pastoral which found a parallel in the pantomimes devised by his friend Charles-Simon Favart. In these three pastoral scenes set in a luxuriant and entirely unthreatening nature, shepherds engage in a perpetual drama of frustrated courtship, reflecting the polished etiquette and suppressed passions of aristocratic society in pre-revolutionary France. Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at left, John Constable’s The Vale of Dedham c.

1827-28 and at right, Thomas Gainsborough’s River landscape with a view of a distant village c. 1748-50 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales 145 x 122 cm Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh Purchased with funds from the Cowan Smith Bequest and with the aid of the Art Fund, 1944 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Constable was born in Suffolk, and he dedicated most of his career to painting the surrounding English countryside with a marked romantic idealism. He was influenced by the grand tradition of European landscape painting, which he learned from artists and dealers he met in London early in his career. This composition, for instance, is indebted broadly to that of Claude Lorrain’s work Hagar and the angel 1646 (National Gallery, London). Constable referred to his own mature masterpiece in al better of June 1828: ‘I have painted a large upright landscape, perhaps my best.’ Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh.

Purchased 1953 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Although best known for his portraits, Gainsborough consistently painted landscape throughout his long career. Rich in detail and carefully composed, this painting reveals his firsthand knowledge of 17th-century Dutch landscapes. During the 1740s, collectors in London admired and sought out works by such artists of Holland’s Golden Age as Meindert Hobbema and Jacob van Ruisdael. The especially horizontal format of this work suggests that it may have been part of a decorative cycle for a domestic interior, perhaps hanging above a fireplace. Purchased with the aid of AE Anderson in memory of his brother Frank, 1927 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Corot, whose career spanned more than 50 years, emerged from the classicism of the 1820s to found the ‘school of nature’ that would find its culmination after his death in the art of the impressionists.

This bucolic early work was painted at Ville-d’Avray, a small town west of Paris, where Corot’s parents owned a modest country house with grounds. The painting was retouched around 1850, at least in part by Corot’s friend and fellow artist Narcisse Virgile Diaz de la Peña, who added the red cap of the seated woman as a bold implement to the otherwise cool palette. Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at centre, Sir Henry Raeburn’s Colonel Alastair Ranaldson Macdonell, 15th Chief of Glengarry c. 1812 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at left, Sir Henry Raeburn’s Colonel Alastair Ranaldson Macdonell, 15th Chief of Glengarry c.

1812 and at centre, William Dyce’s Francesca da Rimini 1837 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at centre, Sir Henry Raeburn’s Sir John Sinclair of Ulbster, 1st Baronet mid to late 1790s Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at left, William Dyce’s Francesca da Rimini 1837 and at right, Sir Edwin Landseer’s Rent-day in the wilderness 1868 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Sir Edwin Landseer (England, 1802-73) Rent-day in the wilderness Bequest of Sir Roderick Impey Murchison, 1871 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Lands became

 famous for his paintings of the Scottish Highlands.

This unusual history painting is based on the heroic exploits of Colonel Donald Murchison, as recounted in Robert Chamber’s Domestic annals of Scotland (1858-60). Murchison, a lawyer turned guerrilla fighter, supported the rebellion to reinstate the Stuart dynasty to the throne of Great Britain. he brazenly defied the government by collecting rents illegally from Scottish tenants to finance local armed resistance. In this painting – commissioned by Murchison’s great-grandson – Landseer conflates several distinct episodes, including the colonel’s daring and notorious ambush of government-appointed agents, escorted by British redcoats, in 1721. Frederic Edwin Church (USA, 1826-1900) Niagara Falls, from the American side 1867 Presented by John Stewart Kennedy, 1887 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at left, Camille Pissarro’s The Marne at Chennevières c.

1864-65 and at right, Claude Monet’s Poplars on the Epte 1891 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Installation view of the exhibition The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney with at left, Claude Monet’s Poplars on the Epte 1891 and at right, Paul Cézanne’s The big trees c. 1904 Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales In the 1880s, Monet gradually developed a more schematic and decorative approach to landscape, which led to his ‘series’ paintings of the 1890s, beginning with the Haystacks in 1891 and culminating in his water lily paintings. This painting belongs to a series of twenty-three canvases that Monet, the founder of French impressionism and one of the most celebrated artists in Western art history, completed in the late spring and autumn of 1891.

For the series, Monet painted poplar trees on the river Epte, close to where it joins the river Seine, just more than a mile from his home at Giverny. The clear blue sky and sunlit clouds express a fresh atmosphere. Monet painted the scene on the river from his boat, which served as a floating studio. This explains the low vantage point, with the trees towering above, the river bank at eye level, and the vast expanse of water dominating the lower half of the painting. Unlike most of the series paintings which are vertical, the Edinburgh picture’s format is square, emphasising the gentle curve of the bank and the verticality of the slender trees trunks and their reflection in the water. Monet had already started to create these works when municipal authorities decided to cut down the trees for lumber and sell them at auction. In order to preserve his motifs, Monet partnered with a timber merchant, and successfully saved the poplars, allowing him to complete his series for exhibition in 1892. The painting was the first impressionist picture to enter the National Galleries of Scotland’s collection.

It was sold to the Gallery in 1924 by the important Scottish art dealer Alex Reid, who was responsible for introducing impressionism to many British collectors. Degas’ Portrait of Diego Martelli 1879 also passed through his hands (see below). © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales This portrait of the Florentine art critic Diego Martelli, a close friend of Degas and an important champion of impressionism, was painted in Martelli’s Paris apartment. The high viewpoint flattens the composition, throwing the sitter’s legs into sharp perspective. The work’s asymmetry and the cropping of such elements as the discarded slippers reflect Degas’s interest in Japanese prints. The curved picture behind the sofa is a map of Paris: the river Seine is visible, running through coloured segments denoting the city’s new souther neighbourhoods. Presented by Mrs Anne F Kessler, 1958; received after her death, 1983 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales This painting dates from the last years of Cézanne’s career.

It is one of a series of works executed in the forest around the Bibémus quarry and the Château Noir, areas in which he often painted in his native Aix-en-Provence. The twisting limbs of the tree at left and the dramatic diagonal of the tree at right inject a sense of dynamism into the composition. Cézanne often left his pertaining in seemingly unfinished states, with areas of the primed white canvas showing through; here, they function not only as markers of the painter’s practice but also as patches of reflected sunlight. Presented by Sir Alexander Maitland in memory of his wife Rosalind, 1960 © Trustees of the National Galleries of Scotland Photo: © Marcus Bunyan and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Three Tahitians epitomises the decorative intensity of Gauguin’s late Polynesian works. Painted in the artist’s final years, during his second period in Tahiti, the work is said to depict a silent conversation in which the man appears to be undecided about the choice offered by the two attractive women – the choice between sensuality and piety. Although ambiguous, it has been suggested these two women are respectively symbolic of vice and virtue.

The bare-chested woman, holding a small posy of flowers and wearing a wedding ring, would seem to represent goodness, her gaze directed to the man. While the woman who turns to face the viewer, her sensuous lips in an enigmatic smile, and holds a mango, may be a reference to the biblical figure Eve who tempted Adam with an apple. These two women recur in several other compositions by Gauguin around this time. In the 1880s, the French post-impressionist fled urban civilisation in search of a tropical Garden of Eden, in which he felt his art could flourish. His final two years of life were spent on the remote island of Hivaoa in the tiny village of Atuona. Art Gallery of New South Wales Art Gallery Road, The Domain Sydney NSW 2000, Australia Open every day 10am – 5pm except Christmas Day and Good Friday

Question: Which 18th century painter's works include 'The Ladies Waldegrave'?
Answer: SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS